ScratchJr: Coding for Young Kids — Kickstarter Campaign

I got to see a build of ScratchJr at the NSF CE21 PI’s meeting in January — it’s really fun. Attractive, responsive, and well thought through, as one would expect with this team.

Coding (or computer programming) is a new type of literacy. Just as writing helps you organize your thinking and express your ideas, the same is true for coding. In the past, coding was seen as too difficult for most people. But we think coding should be for everyone, just like writing.

As young children code with ScratchJr, they learn how to create and express themselves with the computer, not just interact with it. In the process, children develop design and problem-solving skills that are foundational for later academic success, and they use math and language in a meaningful and motivating context, supporting the development of early-childhood numeracy and literacy.

With ScratchJr, children aren’t just learning to code, they are coding to learn.

While I’m all for introducing programming at earlier ages, I remain unconvinced that something like ScratchJr will lead to better programmers in the future. Drawing on my own personal experience, I was introduced to BASIC programming around age 9. I picketed it up quite readily, but I was already pretty good at putting things together and improvising: Legos, woodworking, plumbing, electricity (yeah, I had a very practical father). I was learning piano around that time, too.

My experience and observation of my students is that programming isn’t necessarily a skill unto itself, but is merely one facet in multiple talents. People who have lots of experience in methodical problem-solving, cause-and-effect analysis, music, and just being curious will find many things in their lives–including programming–easier to do.